At over Rs 1.8 lakh crore, GST mop-up rises 8.1% in Feb

NEW DELHI: India’s GST collections rose 8.1% to Rs 1,83,609 crore, pointing to higher consumption post rate reduction.

Domestic collections were estimated to have increased 5.3% to Rs 1,35,772 crore in Feb, based on transactions in Jan. The mop-up from imports was 17.2% higher at Rs 47,837 crore, according to latest official data. This was the third straight month of acceleration in collections since the revamped GST regime came into place.

“The consumption increase that has led to an 8% plus increase in the monthly and annual collections is also supported by the strong GDP data and other macroeconomic indicators published recently,” said M S Mani, partner at consulting firm Deloitte. With rates coming down for a number of items, govt is banking on higher volumes due to a consumption boost to make up for a part of the revenue impact.

“Gross GST collections are showing a steady increase after GST 2.0, reflecting resilience in the economy backed by sustained demand. Many consumption states have had relatively higher growth than others. The data indicates that GST has entered into a phase of stable and predictable growth, which is encouraging to see. Higher growth on imports indicates buoyancy in cross border trade activities,” said Pratik Jain, partner at Price Waterhouse & Co.

On a net basis, collections were 7.9% higher at Rs 1.6 lakh crore as refunds rose 10.2% to Rs 22,595 crore.

Sikkim (67% growth), Meghalaya (33%) and Bihar (23%) were among the top performers in Feb, while Mizoram (24% fall), Uttarakhand (down 10%) and Madhya Pradesh (8% lower), were among the laggards. Among the large revenue earners, Tamil Nadu reported a 6% decline, while Maharashtra (6%), UP (5%), Gujarat (9%) and Karnataka (11%) registered an increase.